Callisto
Callisto was the Spartan woman and mother of Kratos and Deimos, and was also one of Zeus' many lovers. She was kept within the city of Atlantis, until Kratos' arrival in the city. History After giving birth to Deimos in a small village, they were forced to leave it with Kratos still at an early age. Seeking a new life, they went to Sparta where Kratos then lived out the rest of his childhood and grew up. When the Gods Athena and Ares went to capture The Marked Warrior, they arrived at Sparta and mistook Deimos because of the boy's unusual birthmarks. Ares quickly grabbed Deimos, so Kratos jumped to attack the God of War in a desperate act to save his younger brother. Ares smacked him away and then attempted to kill the boy with his blade, only to be stopped by Athena. After the Gods left, Callisto went to go find her sons, only to find an injured and unconscious Kratos and quickly took him back home. After Kratos awoke, Callisto told him that Deimos was gone. So far, that village was only mentioned in A Secret Revealed, one of the unlockable videos in God of War. It depicted Kratos visiting her on the intention of finally finding out who his father really was. When she was about to tell him the truth, she changed into a monster that Kratos had to kill, and, thus, murdered his mother. Just before she died, Callisto revealed the name of his father, Zeus. That scene was reworked for Ghost of Sparta. In the God of War Series ''Ghost of Sparta'' As Kratos traversed Atlantis, he came to the Temple of Poseidon, which was erected by the people of Atlantis in honor of their God. Once Kratos entered the temple, he succumbed to a vision of himself and his brother training as children with a spear and shield, as their mother reminded them that their "battle" was done, and they followed her back into their home. When he awoke from the vision, Kratos came across his mother lying on a bed, weakened and frail. Callisto told her approaching son that she had missed him. At first, Kratos assumed that it was a trick by the Gods due to thinking that his mother was dead, but she assured him that it was truly her. After he closely examined her, Kratos realized that it was indeed his mother to which he was shocked to see her again. She said that his father had brought her there. Confused, Kratos asked: "My father?" Callisto then said that they didn't have much time and that his brother didn't have much time. She told Kratos that Deimos lived and was trapped in torment at Death's Domain and that it would be perilious journey to get there. Angered at that revelation, Kratos asked why she did not tell him that, only for her to apologize as Kratos' father had forbidden her. Kratos, enraged, then asked her who his father was. As she was about to reveal the name of Kratos' father, Callisto was transformed into a hideous beast whom Kratos was then forced to fight. After he defeated his mother in battle, Kratos then takes Callisto into his arms as she used her dying moments to thank him for setting her free, encouraged him to pursue Deimos in Sparta, and slowly died. When Callisto took her last breath, Kratos proclaimed: "Mother! " while he held his dead mother in his arms and asked himself: "What have I done?!" as his mother's body disappeared, which left Kratos enraged at the Gods for taking another member of his family and was more determined to save his brother. In the post-credits, her body was shown to have been transported to the Suicide Bluffs. Her body was placed in a grave next to Deimos' by the Grave Digger who silently kneeled and stated: "Now only one remains" as he buried Callisto next to her late son. ''God of War II'' In ''God of War II'', Callisto was never seen or heard of again until the final installment in the series. Zeus always knew that Kratos was his son, and likely the son who would continue the cycle that Cronos had started. Before she died from a mortal wound that was accidentally inflicted by Kratos himself with the Blade of Olympus, Athena told Kratos that Zeus was his father. With that in mind, Kratos intended to fulfill the prophecy and continue his quest to destroy Zeus once and for all. Upon his ascent of Mount Olympus on Gaia's back, Kratos even exclaimed: "Your son has returned!" ''God of War III'' In God of War III, Kratos, who previously fell into the Underworld after Gaia's betrayal, was making his way back out, when he found a note that was scrawled by one of the tortured souls: That letter was most likely written by Callisto, since it involved many of Kratos' horrible actions. Powers and Abilities While Callisto has no particular powers in her human form, her monster form on the other hand has several powers. Callisto's monster form has great physical strength, durability, and endurance. She also has razor sharp teeth and claws. It is also possible that Callisto is immortal, because she was living in Poseidon's Temple for some time, presumably 30 years, appeared to be gravely ill, and yet she was still living. Gallery Kratos mother 2.png Mother kratos.png Kratosmom.jpg Kratosmother.jpg God of War Ghost of Sparta Playthrough Part 3 397.jpg|Kratos and his mother God of War Ghost of Sparta Playthrough Part 3 416.jpg|Callisto God of War Ghost of Sparta Playthrough Part 3 584.jpg|Kratos holds his dying mother in his arms God of War Ghost of Sparta Playthrough Part 3 6550.jpg|Callisto transformed God of War Ghost of Sparta Playthrough Part 3 579.jpg|Death of Callisto God of War Ghost of Sparta Playthrough Part 3 7698.jpg|Kratos against Callisto Rsz snap031.jpg|Callisto's beast form concept art callisto young.jpg|young Callisto callisto old.jpg|older Callisto Callisto The Monster Beast.jpg Video Trivia * The name Callisto meant "the most beautiful", which was originally an epithet of Artemis, likely a bear-goddess, later on her devotee, who became Zeus' lover that was transformed into a bear by Hera. In her bear form, she saw her son, Arcas (cf. άρκτος "bear"), who was a hunter, in a forest. As she ran to his direction to try to hug him, he prepared to kill her with his spear to defend himself. Before that could happen, Zeus transformed both into constellations, and, thus, saved them. The name of Kratos' mother was a reference to that nymph, as she was also a lover of Zeus who was turned into a monster and was almost killed her son. Kratos himself could be considered a "hunter" who just wanted to defend himself. ** It was speculated that Zeus had placed a curse on Callisto: if she ever revealed to Kratos and/or Deimos who their real father was, she transformed into a mindless monster that would slay them. * Callisto was voiced by Deanna Hurstold, while her younger form was voiced by Jennifer Hale. * From the words in her note, it was clear that Callisto blamed herself entirely for Kratos' choice to take a path of destruction, rather than Kratos himself. * Callisto transforms into a monster in a similar way was the same as Calibos from the 1981 ''Clash of the Titans'' film. * Even after she died by her own son's hands, Callisto still loved and cared about Kratos. She wished for all the blame to be placed upon her, and that Kratos be given redemption. * Since the hidden Secret Revealed ''scene was non-canonical, and Callisto was unable to say Zeus' name before she became a monster, it was eventually Athena who told Kratos that Zeus was his father. *Callisto was the third direct member of Kratos' family that he killed. The first two were Lysandra and Calliope. **Similar to them, Kratos was distraught by her death, which showed that he cared greatly for her. * If Kratos wears the God Armor, the player can continuously attack Callisto when she is on the ground before Kratos finishes her, in order to receive more Red Orbs. * Callisto was the name of the self-proclaimed "Warrior Queen" in the television series ''Xena: Warrior Princess. This Callisto was known for her brutal tactics in her army's raids and her sadistic personality. *It is presumed that Callisto had disappeared in Kratos' adult life, as he had believed her to be dead when he found her. * Since Callisto was implied to be in the Underworld in God of War III, it is possible that she was able to escape due to Hades' death. However, she could have chosen to stay because of her desire to suffer for her son's sake. * Given that Zeus himself had dug her grave and buried her with his own hands, it can be presumed that he had genuinely loved Callisto. It was likely that it was Zeus who made Callisto's corpse disappear from Kratos' hands. Related Pages *Kratos *Deimos *A Secret Revealed de:Callisto Category:Characters Category:God of War Category:God of War III Category:God of War: Ghost of Sparta Category:Enemies Category:Allies Category:Bosses Category:Humans Category:Monsters Category:God of War Origins Collection Category:God of War: Saga Collection Category:God of War Series Category:Females Category:Deceased Category:God of War Collection